Reader Question

I was cleaning out my email and just noticed this one from a reader.

Hello,

I came across your blog. I am hoping maybe you could tell me if it is possible to become a flight attendant and fly only red eyes and bring 1-2 kids. I know this sounds crazy but I am a single mother and my only wish is to travel! My daughter is almost and spends half her time at her  friend's home. If necessary she could stay with them when I work or home school and come along. I have a 1 year old boy too, my daughter is very helpful and could manage him if she were to come with me. I have been a stay at home mom since 18 and am desperate to get out of the house. I got my real estate license at the crash and I think becoming a stewardess would be really amazing. I think it is dream job that is achievable, however I'm just not sure how to make it happen with kids. Maybe you know a coworker with kids that has some input. Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

~L

Dear L,
I'm going to begin by telling you that you absolutely cannot bring your children to work. For the same reasons you cannot bring your child to a non-flying job- you cannot bring your children to work at an airline.  When you are at work- you need to be focused on the job you are being paid for- not on your children.  That's the general answer.

Then there is the safety issue. Flight Attendants are safety professionals. We are trained to evacuate an entire airplane in under 2 minutes, put out fires, perform CPR, and other various other safety related duties. In the event of an emergency you need to be focused on that.  If you have both of your children with you then you are not focused on getting everyone out. Its a parental instinct to save your own flesh & blood before anyone else. (side note: That's why parents traveling with children are not permitted to sit in the exit row).

Then there is the practicality issue: You'd be away for days at a time and on-call.  It's hard enough to get yourself out of bed at 3am when you are called for a trip- rushing around to shower and get out the door just yourself- now add to that a baby and teenager. All in under 2 hours. Not happening.  And are you going to buy tickets for your children to ensure they are on your flights?  Sure we fly for free- but we only fly for free if there is an unsold seat on that flight. Flights are full and we often get left behind when we try to vacation.

Then there is the effect on the child: Your teenager is a teenager. It's one thing if she's helpful but it's another to expect her to care for your younger child all of the time. She is still a child herself. My mother became a flight attendant when I was 17 and I was responsible for caring for my 13 year old sister since she was a single mother. It wasn't so bad because she was able to do things for herself, but I remember missing out on some things because I had to pick her up from dance, school, church etc. Also- are you planning to homeschool your daughter? If she's graduated from high school- why hold her back from furthering herself? Help her to become independent and go to college or get a full time job.

That's the long answer to: No you cannot take your kids with you. If being a flight attendant is really something that you would like to do then you need to accept the fact that you would be away from your kids for days at a time. As a single mother you need to come to terms with that.  Do you have a supportive family in the area? Are your parents willing to help you out? Do you have brothers or sisters who would be willing to help?  Even so- you can't depend on that. Its essential to do your homework and find an amazing childcare provider who is OK with a flight attendant's schedule. You're going to pay a lot- but it's your child.  Maybe work something out with your daughter or family to spend the nights at your home with your baby, but have a nanny during the days.

Flying while having children IS possible. Flight Attendants and Pilots all across the world do it. You have to really understand the basic fact that you will rarely be home in the first few years of flying....and you won't make a whole lot of money. With those 2 major factors in place- do you still want to fly?